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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29933613">i got people back on land who count on me</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Piratesofpenzance4/pseuds/Piratesofpenzance4'>Piratesofpenzance4</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Criminal Minds (US TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alex Blake is a queen, Alternate Universe - Boarding School, Aquariums, Dad Hotch, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Spencer Reid Gets a Hug, Spencer Reid Needs a Hug, Team as Family</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 22:36:11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,033</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29933613</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Piratesofpenzance4/pseuds/Piratesofpenzance4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The kids get a four day weekend, and decide to go to the aquarium. </p><p>(Note: this takes place in themetaphorgirl's wonderful AU: Patron Saint of Lost Causes. All rights to that AU go to her, I'm just playing in it</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aaron Hotchner &amp; Spencer Reid, Alex Blake &amp; Spencer Reid, Emily Prentiss &amp; Spencer Reid</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>60</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/themetaphorgirl/gifts">themetaphorgirl</a>.</li>


        <li>
            Inspired by

            <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24442195">Patron Saint of Lost Causes</a> by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/themetaphorgirl/pseuds/themetaphorgirl">themetaphorgirl</a>.
        </li>

    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Hey kiddo” Alex stroked the small child’s hair as she walked into the seventh floor common room, “Where’s Hotch?” </p><p>“In his room” Spencer replied, not looking up from his book. “I think Emily’s with him.” </p><p>“Alright, sweetheart. Let me go talk to him, and then I’ll be back for movie night.”  Alex walked into Hotch’s room, not bothering to knock before opening the door. Hotch was sprawled out on his bed, scribbling away at a notebook and Emily was at his desk, throwing papers. </p><p>“Come right on in, Miller” Hotch said, glaring at her as she joined Emily at his desk. “Wasn’t doing anything.”</p><p>“Did you get the tickets, Em?” She asked, barely able to contain her excitement any longer. </p><p>“Yes, Alexandra, I bought the tickets for everyone. Everything is set. Rossi even rented one of those large SUV’s, so we can all go in one car” Emily threw another paper at Hotch, hitting his face. </p><p>“All that’s left is to tell the kids and pack them up.” Hotch said, “I was trying to make lists for everyone when Emily came in.”</p><p>“Alright, grumpy, Miller and I will get out of your hair. See you in a few.” </p><p>The only sound was a grunt as the two roommates left the room.<br/>
........</p><p>“So, as you all know, we have a four day weekend coming up” Hotch stated, looking at the little kids sitting on the couch, ready for movie night. “And we decided we needed to do something for it” </p><p>Penelope’s head shot up with enthusiasm. “So what are we doing?!”</p><p>“We are taking a road trip down to the Georgia Aquarium. We’ll leave Friday morning around 9. Everything’s all set, all you have to do is pack” </p><p>The kids started shouting questions at the announcement. The older kids were expecting Spencer and Penelope to be excited by the news, but even JJ and Derek seemed just as enthusiastic about the trip to Atlanta. </p><p>In fact, the only one who didn’t seem excited was Spencer. </p><p>“Spencer, sweetheart, what’s the matter? Aren’t you excited?” Alex fussed over the child, kissing his forehead lightly. </p><p>“Do you guys want me there?”</p><p>“Of course, sweet boy, why wouldn’t we?”</p><p> </p><p>Emily walked over and sat next to him and Alex on the couch, rubbing his back  “Kiddo, you could probably tell me more about belugas than any tour guide could. We want you there. So what do you say, you coming to Atlanta with us?”</p><p>Spencer started talking with the vigor they knew he was holding back, “did you know beluga whales don’t have fused vertebrae in their neck, so they have the unique ability to turn their head?”</p><p>Emily ruffled his hair. “‘No kid, I didn’t”</p><p>———-<br/>
The day they left, Hotch’s schedule was quickly thrown out the window. He had planned for them to leave at nine, but allowing the young kids to pack for themselves was clearly an issue. That morning, when he walked into the young girls’ room, he was greeted by five large pink suitcases.</p><p>“Pen, you can’t bring all that.” </p><p>“But Hotch, I need all this!”</p><p>“Pen, if you bring all this, nobody else will be able to have stuff.”</p><p>Penelope pouted as Hotch left the room. He could help her later. Meanwhile, in the boys room, Derek was fine. His one duffel bag was perfectly packed, with enough underwear and deodorant for the weekend, a victory in Hotch’s book. Spencer had his large duffel bag (which James had helpfully picked up at Target earlier that week), however, when Hotch opened it, it was almost entirely full of books. </p><p>“Spencer, kiddo, you need clothes. We can’t bring the library with us.” </p><p>“But Hotch, I’ll read all these before we get to Atlanta.” </p><p>“Spencer, Emily bought a new iPod a few weeks ago, right?” Hotch asked gently. Spencer nodded. “Well, she took her old one and loaded it with audiobooks for you. She thought you or Alex might try to bring an entire bookstore with you.”  He handed the small purple iPod over to Spencer, who gently took it. </p><p>“Now, can we pack some clothes, kiddo?” Hotch asked, gently flipping the suitcase back open. “You can bring a few books with you.” Spencer nodded enthusiastically, removing the books from his suitcase and opening his wardrobe. Eventually, The Great Gatsby was replaced with socks, and Catcher in The Rye was replaced with cardigans, until Hotch was satisfied with the contents of his bag, and Spencer with the contents of Emily’s old Nano. He added two final things: Spencer’s comfort blanket, and a soft orca he had bought on a whim, before zipping the duffel closed and lifting it, holding out his hand. “Okay, lets go sign out with Gideon and get on the road.” </p><p>The three walked down the stairs, running into Penelope, who had condensed her suitcases down into two large pink ones, and JJ, whose own duffel bag was slung over her shoulder. They continued down, signing out with Gideon and opening the door to the crisp morning. A sleek, large van sat in front of them, with Rossi at the wheel, James already in shotgun. They threw the last few bags in the back before climbing in. Alex was already sitting behind James, and she welcomed Spencer climbing into the middle and peering over her shoulder at the dictionary she was reading: Yiddish this time. Hotch got in next to her, and the remaining four climbed into the last row. Pen pulled out her tablet, setting up a game for the four to play, and after checking they were all settled, Rossi put his Billy Joel CD in, shifting the van into drive. </p><p>Only fifty minutes behind. They could make it up, so long as they didn’t hit construction. Hotch could relax.<br/>
——————-<br/>
They had just made it into Mississippi when the first mishap happened. JJ shot up from the back of the van, startled. “Guys, I forgot pads!” She yelled. Hotch looked back. In all the hustle of the morning, he had assumed JJ would be responsible enough for her own bags. He should have double checked.</p><p>“There’s a Walmart at the next exit, should we stop?” Rossi asked from the steering wheel, turning off the Billy Joel playing from the radio. </p><p>“Yeah, we probably should” Alex said, shifting slightly around Spencer, who had fallen asleep on her shoulder, wrapped up in Hotch’s blanket.  </p><p>“Hey Hotch” Derek asked, and Hotch shifted back in his seat. “Should I stay in here with the kid? Don’t want to wake him up and throw him directly in a Walmart.” </p><p>Hotch nodded, “Yeah, probably for the best.” </p><p>Derek gently unbuckled Spencer and moved him to the back, letting him rest on his shoulder. Spencer took in a sharp breath, but didn’t wake up, burrowing his face in his newfound pillow, and Derek turned back to the game.</p><p>The rest of the kids exited the van and made their way into the store, moving quickly towards the pad aisle. Once there JJ quickly got overwhelmed by all the various options, and Alex had to step in.</p><p>“These are the ones I used when I was your age, Jay.” Alex said, handing her down a black box. “They should work for you, and if they don’t, we can always try a different brand” JJ nodded and accepted the box, tears in her eyes. They raced to the checkout, and managed to get out without any further questions. Only ten minutes lost. </p><p>With Spencer asleep in the back of the van, now curled up on JJ, Emily wound up sitting next to Hotch, and the two got into a very intense game of name the song, while Alex burrowed her nose in her tattered copy of The Scarlet Letter. Eventually, Rossi yelled at them for ruining the beautiful sounds of Elton John, and the car fell silent, except for the tinny sounds of My Chemical Romance from Emily’s earbuds.<br/>
---------------------------------------------------------</p><p> </p><p>After a stop in Birmingham for lunch, which also lead to a tour around the Civil Rights Museum, they got into Atlanta only twenty minutes late, which was itself a small miracle, and checked straight into the hotel, distributing the rooms in the suite and turning in for the night. Hotch gently set Spencer down on the bed, tucking his blanket around him. He could sleep for a while before Hotch roused him to brush his teeth. Derek climbed in next to him, and Hotch sat on the other side of the bed. </p><p>“I hope he enjoys this” Derek whispered, “He deserves it.”</p><p>Meanwhile, in the girls room, Penelope was carefully arranging her stuffed animals in the bed JJ and her were sharing. Alex counted seven, but she could have been missing some. JJ had brushed her teeth and called her mom, and she was already curled up in her bed</p><p>“Why are you so stressed, Miller?” Emily asked, lounging next to her. </p><p>“What do you mean?”</p><p>“Chill out, nothing will go wrong. Your kid will enjoy himself, we’ll all have a great time, and go back to Tennessee.” Emily replied, clarifying her point. </p><p>Alex nodded. “You’re right. Nothing will go wrong.” But somehow, she didn’t believe him.<br/>
-----------------------------------</p><p>They arrived at the aquarium soon after opening, and collected several maps. Penelope produced a bright pink sheet of paper, complete with a detailed itinerary. </p><p>“...So, we’ll go to the dolphins before lunch, and then finish with the sharks!” she squealed, causing other patrons to look over. James shushed her gently, reminding her to use her inside voice. </p><p>“Alright, so where to first, Miss Penelope?” He asked, grabbing her hand. </p><p>“The otters!” she cheered, leading the way. </p><p>While walking towards the otters, James fell into line with Alex. Spencer was excitedly rambling about river otters to anyone who would listen, much to the amusement of Emily and the chagrin of the tour guide. </p><p>“Having fun?” He asked. </p><p>“Definitely” she said, readjusting her braids so they weren’t in her way. “Just thinking about how this will be one of our last high school trips” </p><p>“Hey, no thinking like that now” James was quick to reply. “We’ll still be able to take these trips, I’m sure of it” </p><p>Alex sighed, before nodding, “I guess.” </p><p> Spencer was now gathering a small crowd. “Did you know the Asian small-clawed otter is the smallest of the thirteen river species, and they have up to 450,000 hairs per square inch?” The tour guide in the background was fuming, so James went over to the child. </p><p>“Say, what do you say we move on?” he asked, “Penelope, where to next?”<br/>
----------------------------</p><p>At the dolphins, they sat in on the presentation, which enthralled the three little ones, before moving towards the encounter they had paid for. There, Spencer was excited to pepper the scientists with questions about the dolphins, before all nine went into the water to interact with the dolphins. All of them were excited to play with the dolphins, and they left the exhibit chattering wildly.</p><p>None of them noticed that Spencer was not with them.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'M BACK</p><p>Sorry guys, school was absolutely killing me. But here's the next (and final) chapter!</p><p>CW: implied abuse of a child</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>JJ noticed first. “Hey guys, where’s Spencer?” She asked, peering around the big kids. </p><p>“I thought he was with you two?” Rossi looked around the group. JJ shook her head “no, I thought he was with Hotch and Alex.” </p><p>The big kids turned and split up, looking like Taz as they searched the aquarium for Spencer. Aaron pushed past parents and other groups, distressed at the idea they had lost the child. Spencer was his responsibility, Jason had trusted him. And he had let them both down. </p><p>Aaron remembered the one time he had lost Sean at a shopping mall. He hadn't been able to sit for a week after that. And he knew, deep down, Jason wouldn’t react in the way his father had, but once the memory came, he couldn’t seem to shake it.</p><p>He was so lost in his thought he did not notice Derek and the girls coming up beside him until Derek clapped him and the shoulder. He jumped. </p><p>“Hey, you okay man?” Derek asked, brows arching. Next to him, both girls looked near tears. JJ was holding Penelope’s hands, and Penelope’s lips were shaking. </p><p>“Yeah, I’m fine. Just want to find him.” </p><p>“You and me both. I’m going to take the girls and head back to the otters, he seemed pretty into them.” </p><p>Hotch watched as the three retreated, Derek trying to comfort the two girls, and then turned in a different direction. Trying to calm the nerves and the memories, he set off. <br/>….<br/>Alex and James walked back towards the main cafeteria. One of Alex’s braids was loosened from her consistent scratching of her hair, a telltale sign of Alex’s stress. </p><p>“Listen,” James said. “I don’t think he’d come in here, it’s far too loud. We need to think like Spencer to find him.” Alex sighed, sitting on one of the benches. </p><p>“Anything could have happened to him, Jamie. He’s just a baby, anyone could have snatched him...”</p><p>“Hey, enough of that.” James sat next to her, tilting her head so she was forced to look at him. “We will find him. He probably just got really interested in something, and stopped. You know how he is.” </p><p>Alex pulled her head away from James, turning to look at her Tevas. James gently rubbed her shoulder, before gently pulling out the braid and redoing it. </p><p>“I think I know where he is.” </p><p>-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p>Emily ran into the dolphin exhibit, Converse slapping against the tile floor, scanning the room for the small child. In the corner, her eyes landed on a hunched over figure, shoes untied and glasses disarrayed. The other patrons seemed to be worried for the child, trying to provide comfort. </p><p>“Spencer!” Emily called, breaking through the crowd and pulling him roughly to her chest. “We’ve been looking all over for you” </p><p>Spencer sank further into her hug, still crying. “I thought you guys had left me” </p><p>“Oh, sweet boy, we would never leave you.” Emily rubbed his back, scooping him up into her arms. “Now, why don’t we go find grumpy and Alex? They’ve been worried sick trying to find you.” </p><p>Emily shifted the boy gently, turning to back the way she came, still gently rubbing the child’s back. His sobs had tapered off, but he was still shaking and there were two tear tracks making their way down his face. </p><p>The two ran into Hotch near the belugas, James and Alex close behind. All three of them looked relieved to see Emily with the young child, and Hotch grabbed Spencer from her arms, holding him close. </p><p>“Ow, too tight, Hotch.” the child whined. Hotch loosened his hold, moving back to look down at the child.</p><p>“We looked all over for you…” He didn’t finish his sentence, instead pulling the child back into his arms. Alex stepped up, gently stroking his hair. <br/>“We’re just glad you’re safe, baby.” She whispered. <br/>----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p>	They quickly met up with the rest of the group at the cafeteria, and after a tearful reunion with the two girls, and hugs from Rossi and Morgan, the group sat down to lunch. The rest of the day went into a whirlwind of activity, going to see the belugas and the sea lions, before then going to the touch pool, and finally winding up in the final activity of the day. The sharks. </p><p>They walked through the tunnel slowly, looking up. Derek had picked up Spencer, who was a little too small to see, and he seemed enchanted by the whale sharks. </p><p>“Did you know they have over 300 teeth on each jaw?” he whispered, and Derek laughed. </p><p>“You know, I wish I had you when I was taking biology.” </p><p>	The group stopped as the rays and the sharks swam overhead, and the rest of the visitors walked around them. All nine of them looked up in awe. </p><p>	Penelope broke the silence. “It’s perfect.” <br/>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p>Back at the hotel, the three younger kids decided to watch Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and Hotch, ever the dad friend, tucked them in, admiring the whale shark, beluga, and dolphin joining the orca tucked around Spencer, and the vast collection around Penelope, even though she had only brought three with her. </p><p>The rest of the big kids sat around the living room. “Well, I think that was a successful trip” James said, stretching out on the couch. </p><p>Emily looked in at the kids and Hotch, all curled up together. Morgan had apparently decided to join them, sitting on the other bed in the room, laughing at the movie. “Yeah, even grumpy seemed to enjoy himself.” </p><p>Rossi looked in on them too. “Yeah, we’ll have to do these again. I doubt the little bit over there has ever taken trips like these.” </p><p>……</p><p>The rest of the suite seemed to be asleep. Alex worked by a soft light, looking back over her Yiddish dictionary. Eventually, a creak in the floorboard startled her, and she dropped the book.</p><p>“Sorry.” Hotch said. Alex scrutinized his face carefully, before moving over in the oversized armchair and patting next to her. “Come here, bubba.” </p><p>Hotch looked uncertain, but after a pointed stare from Alex, he settled in next to her, resting his head on her shoulder. “He scared me today.” He stated, looking down at the hole in his sock.</p><p>Alex looked back into the room, where the three younger teens and wound up curled around each other. Spencer was half on top of JJ, and attached to Penelope as if she was a lifeline, and Alex marveled at the bond the three shared. “Yeah,” she looped her arm around Hotch. “He scared me too.”</p><p>Hotch seemed more interested in his sock than the conversation. “When JJ noticed he was gone, the only thing I could think of was when I lost my brother….” he trailed off.</p><p>She could tell he didn’t want to continue, so she squeezed him closer to her and risked pressing a kiss to his brow. She wondered when anyone had last done this for Hotch, but doubted she’d like the answer. </p><p>She would do it. And so they fell asleep in that chair, bound together by their weird, but perfect family.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is entirely based off a series of real events. I forgot pads on a road trip, got lost in GA Aquarium, had an otter phase, etc.</p><p>I don't exactly know where the school is, except it's in Tennessee, so I put it about two hours away from Memphis.</p><p>Follow on tumblr: piratesofpenzance4</p></blockquote></div></div>
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